What is RISECI

RISECI is an acronym that stands for Religion in the Shaping of European Cultural Identity; it is an integral project based on the idea that, if Europe is to explore its religious heritage, it must first recognize its legacy. The project offers a chance at dialogue in a new context, in an attempt to integrate religious and non-religious traditions of the same standing.

Religion and Culture in the Shaping of Europe is keenly interested in the way in which religion and spirituality are put to use for social change. Religion in a globalized world has unleashed a cascade of unexpected implications that have an impact on civil society in very different ways.

Religion is a source of meaning and is a source of European meaning. This project seeks to bring together territories where religion has played a significant role and others where the religious factor is less explicit or absent.

The objective is to offer new perspectives on the discussion about the sacred, new technologies, cultural heritage and the idea of Europe. It is for this reason that we aim to have different partners from geographically distant places in Europe to try to understand this phenomenon not only from a local viewpoint but from a broad and genuinely European perspective.

Shared knowledge is the key to this project, which is being put together by university departments, museums, associations, cultural organizations and, above all, institutions with very different religious backgrounds: Anglicanism, Lutheranism, the Catholic tradition and places where inter-religious dialogue is present.

The objectives of this network are to:

· Create a new way of cooperating in the field of Religion, Culture and Media Affairs in a European context.

· Enhance multi-European networking among partners from different areas and disciplines in the ambit of Culture, Religion and European Affairs.

· Analyze how religious and non-religious not-for-profit organisations can help to foster social cohesion in different European countries.

· Develop multi-stakeholder partnerships involving audiences of different ages and from different religious backgrounds.